As Darkness Falls
|Season = 1 |Antagonist = Nemis |Setting = Nespa |In-Universe Date = Year 0 |Production # = 76607 |Filming Dates = 14 November to 24 November 1994 |Original Air-Date = |Written By = Robert Bielak |Story By = |Teleplay By = |Directed By = George Mendeluk |Order in Series = 6 of 111 |Order in Season = 6 of 13 |Order in Franchise= 11 of 304 |Prev Episode in Series = "Ares" |Next Episode in Series = "Pride Comes Before a Brawl" |Prev Episode in Franchise = "Ares" |Next Episode in Franchise = "Pride Comes Before a Brawl" |title cap image = }} Hercules attends a friend's wedding where Nemis the Centaur arrives and kidnaps the bride and her maid of honor. Summary The centaur, Nemis enters one of Hera's temples and asks for her help in obtaining Penelope for himself. After a fire erupts on the altar, Nemis sees a club, he sees this as a sign from Hera and asks who he needs to kill. Elsewhere, two centaurs are practicing their archery skills, aided by a woman, Lyla. Nemis comes and gives Lyla some wine and something else to add to it later. He shows the other centaurs the club, telling them he will avenge his brother's death, using the club to kill Hercules. Meanwhile, Hercules is traveling alone along the road, when he hears Salmoneus call him. He is not too happy to see Salmoneus. The two men travel on to Nespa, where Penelope and her groom prepare for their wedding. As part of the wedding celebrations, Craesus challenges Hercules to a match to see who can throw a javelin the farthest with the most accuracy. Hercules accepts, allowing Craesus to pick the target. He chooses a tree stump off in the distance, throws the javelin, and hits the target. Hercules picks up a javelin, saying it is light and hard to judge distance. He throws it anyway, splitting Craesus' javelin in half and piercing right through the tree stump. Lyla is watching and appears to be impressed by Hercules' skill. She takes him to see some nice views of Nespa. She tries to seduce him but he tells her, "I don't want to go through life leaving a string of fatherless children behind." She gives him a drink and kisses him, he stops her again and walks off, leaving her behind. As he walks away, she pours the remaining wine into a plant pot, which withers and dies. Later, talking with Salmoneus, Hercules complains about his eyes and that he is not feeling himself. Hercules begins talking with Deric, who complains about the centaurs being placed at tables far away from the rest of the people celebrating the wedding. He asks Hercules if he will join the centaurs, Hercules accepts and tells him that he was trained by a centaur named Ceridian. Later Deric and Hercules participate in an archery contest, even with his eyes affected Hercules manages to tie with Deric. Afterwards, Deric asks Lyla if she gave Hercules the drink. She says she did and that "Nemis is too crazy to care." Craesus says she would be crazy too if Hercules had killed her twin. Lyla replies that he deserved to die for trying to rape Hercules' wife. Suspicious of Lyla's earlier actions, Hercules questions Penelope about her. She tells Hercules that Lyla has become wilder since hanging out with the centaurs. Hercules says it is not a crime, Penelope says she feels the same, "some are good and some are bad." As they talk, Nemis appears at the celebrations and Hercules reveals to Penelope that he knows Nemis, because he had to kill his brother. When a fight breaks out, the centaurs seize the chance to cause some more damage. Nemis begins smashing up tables and kidnaps Penelope, while Craesus snatches another woman and kicks Hercules unconscious. When Hercules regains consciousness, he tells Salmoneus that he is blind and that he needs his help. He, Salmoneus, Tyron and Marcus go after the centaurs to rescue the women that were taken. The centaurs chain the women up in a cave, telling them they will have their fun later, and leave to go after Hercules again. Hercules and the other men stand up against the centaurs. Unable to see, Hercules gets Salmoneus to direct him as he shoots arrows at the centaurs. Nemis causes a boulder to fall and Hercules strikes Craesus with an arrow as Tyron saves Marcus from the boulder, is killed in the process. While Hercules buries Tyron, Deric and Lyla tell Hercules to hide until his sight returns. Deric says that Nemis was not always bad, but life wore him down. In the cave, Penelope tries to get Nemis to let them go, but he denies the two women their freedom. In the woods outside the cave, Salmoneus distracts Nemis so Hercules can save the women. Nemis comes back into the cave, and he and Hercules begins fighting. While they fight, Penelope and the other woman escape. Even blind, Hercules manages to avoid being beaten by Nemis' club. Hercules uses his sword to cause the pot to spill on the fire, putting it out. He tells Nemis with no light, "you have the same problem I do." As the two continue to fight Nemis is impaled by his own club, and falls to the ground wounded. Hercules tries to stop the roof from collapsing on Penelope. Nemis gets up and holds the roof, telling Hercules to save Penelope. Hercules gets Penelope and the other woman and they run out of the cave as it collapses, killing Nemis. Later, Hercules says that Nemis really did love Penelope and Salmoneus says he won lots of money because no one had faith in Hercules against the centaurs. Hercules takes the money and gives it to Marcus and Penelope. Hercules walks off with Salmoneus protesting about his money. Disclaimer No Centaurs were harmed in the production of this motion picture. Gallery File:Darkness_falls_01.jpg|Target Practice File:Darkness_falls_02.jpg|Very Happy File:Darkness_falls_03.jpg|Prospects...errr, Guests File:Darkness_falls_04.jpg|I Couldn't Make it Easy for You File:Darkness_falls_05.jpg|Something Wrong with my Eyes File:Darkness_falls_06.jpg|I Did as Nemis Asked File:Darkness_falls_07.jpg|Trouble File:Darkness_falls_08.jpg|Captured File:Darkness_falls_09.jpg|Horse, My Dear File:Darkness_falls_10.jpg|Burial for a Good Soldier File:Darkness_falls_11.jpg|Never a Coward File:Darkness_falls_12.jpg|Hera's Club File:Darkness_falls_13.jpg|Where are the Keys?! File:Darkness_falls_14.jpg|A Beautiful Ceremony Background Information * This episode is loosely based on "the Centauromachy"; the Lapiths battle with the Centaurs at the wedding feast of Pirithous. * Lucy Lawless appears in her second role in the franchise as Lyla. * Nemis is the twin brother of Nessus (also played by Cliff Curtis) from Hercules in the Underworld. What Nessus attempted to do to Deianeira and Hercules killing him are referenced several times during the episode, providing direct continuity with the Universal Action Pack films. * This is the first episode to mention Hercules' Centaur mentor Ceridian, who would appear in Season 2's "Centaur Mentor Journey". * The story of Deric and Lyla would continue in Season 2's "Outcast". Salmoneus would also re-appear. * According to Whoosh.org, in 1998, Robert Trebor said that this episode took about 9 days to film. Most of the work was done outdoors and they also filmed inside a dormant volcano. Links and References Guest Stars * Robert Trebor as Salmoneus * Cliff Curtis as Nemis * Jacqueline Collen as Penelope * Lucy Lawless as Lyla * Peter Muller as Deric * Mark Ferguson as Craesus Other Cast *Matthew Humphrey as Marcus *Buzz Moller as Tyron *Fiona Mogridge as Cheris *Maya Dalziel as Mother *Jonathan Bell-Booth as Brother #1 *Mervyn Whitley, Jr. as Brother #2 *Uncredited as Wedding Guest #1 *Uncredited as Wedding Guest #2 *Uncredited as Wedding Guest #3 *Uncredited as Athletic Judge References * Nespa * Nessus * Ceridian * Taris * Centaur: with Big Horse Kick Season Navigation de:Das Gift der Hera Category:HTLJ Season 1 episodes